The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by jvince

Rope (1948)
dir. Alfred Hitchcock

The Good: James Stewart. Excellent screenplay and character work. Unique and utterly impressive; the film was shot in a single setting with only ten long takes. Masterful tension-building. The final act.

The Bad: Might be too talky for some. While it starts off with an attention-grabbing scene, it takes some time before things start to really get going.

The Bottom Line: Could someone explain to me why nobody ever talks about Rope? Smart, suspenseful, and absorbing, this criminally underrated gem unquestionably stands among Hitchcock's finest works. Highly recommended.

Notice the date? March of 2010. I was beating this crew over the heads for months. I felt the same way.

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Is it rude of me to ask? Am I THAT MUCH of a pain in the ass?

Are you guys ever going to watch Rope?

I really want to discuss it with you and hear your views.

[KilloWertz]

I'll watch Rope someday whenever the Alfred Hitchcock UK set goes on a good enough sale, so it's not a matter of if for me.

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Notice the date? March of 2010. I was beating this crew over the heads for months. I felt the same way.

you did? I don't remember that

[Show spoiler] Squid was so passionate about us watching this, and it took me and higgy so long to watch it, that I had many sleepless nights with "Rope...rope...rope...." ringing in my head. The guilt was unbearable. Finally, I sat down and watched it. Great film

[surfdude12]

Last Chance Harvey

Film: 2/5
-great cast, but that's about it
-about two people (Hoffman, Thompson) who meet and share their individual family challenges
-parts of the plot are so unrealistic that I started to laugh - Hoffman stalks Thompson worse than Travis Bickle, and yet not only does she not call the cops, but she is cool with it? I suppose both her and Hoffman are emotionally vulnerable and desperate, so I suppose it makes sense from that angle, but Hoffman's character goes WAY overboard
-THere is a scene

[Show spoiler]at HOffman daughter's wedding

that is so cliche, and we're supposed to believe will fix everything in his world? Unfortunately, the real world never works this way. Also, the film has the Hoffman-Thompson friendship address Hoffman's issues, but never addresses Thompson's issues with her family. Does she just figure out what do to on her side all by herself? That seems to go against the narrative

[surfdude12]

Rudy

Film: 5/5
-went to the store to buy this after ND beat USC
-they didn't have the blu - I didn't care, I said "give me the DVD" (talk about impulsive)
-I've always loved this underdog film, along with other greats like Cinderella Man and Seabiscuit, but this one has something special in it that the others don't. Charles Dutton. Why in the FACK is this dude not in more films? I read his bio and read that he did a 1-2 year stint in prison. He would have been GREAT in Shawshank! Just look at this scene where he tells Rudy "in this lifetime you don't have to prove nothing to nobody except yourself" (candidate for greatest quote in cinema history)

Rudy and Janitor - YouTube

maybe its just me, but that scene reduced this dude to a sobbing princess. I can't think of many other scenes that had that much impact on me.

p.s. GO IRISH! (I hate the SEC)

[jvince]

Clue (1985)
dir. Jonathan Lynn

The Good: Great cast; they seem to have had lots of fun filming. Some great one-liners abound. Yvette and the running gag. Drawing lots. Flames.

The Bad: Jokes are hit or miss. The ending, or should I say the endings (I'm aware that during its release, different theaters showed different endings. I just don't like what they subsequently did by putting all of the alternate endings together; it unnecessarily lengthens the final act).

The Bottom Line: Clue is worth checking out for those who are in the mood for comedy with a little mystery mixed in.

[jvince]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Notice the date? March of 2010. I was beating this crew over the heads for months. I felt the same way.

Imo, Rope is the second best Hitchcock film I've seen:

1. Rear Window
2. Rope
3. Psycho
4. Dial M for Murder
5. The Birds
6. North by Northwest
7. Vertigo
8. Strangers on a Train
9. Suspicion (the most boring film I have ever powered through)

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

Rudy

Film: 5/5
-went to the store to buy this after ND beat USC
-they didn't have the blu - I didn't care, I said "give me the DVD" (talk about impulsive)
-I've always loved this underdog film, along with other greats like Cinderella Man and Seabiscuit, but this one has something special in it that the others don't. Charles Dutton. Why in the FACK is this dude not in more films? I read his bio and read that he did a 1-2 year stint in prison. He would have been GREAT in Shawshank! Just look at this scene where he tells Rudy "in this lifetime you don't have to prove nothing to nobody except yourself" (candidate for greatest quote in cinema history)
Rudy and Janitor - YouTube
maybe its just me, but that scene reduced this dude to a sobbing princess. I can't think of many other scenes that had that much impact on me.

p.s. GO IRISH! (I hate the SEC)

How did Rudy get the fundsto pay for Notre Dame? A part time job for two years isn't enough!

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

How did Rudy get the fundsto pay for Notre Dame? A part time job for two years isn't enough!

A Rudy Conspiracy Theory! I like it!

Sorry bro, but too many of us have drunk the Rudy kool-aid and thus are completely unwilling to investigate such claims, despite their merit

P.S. Your avatar is AWESOME!!!!

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

A Rudy Conspiracy Theory! I like it!

Sorry bro, but too many of us have drunk the Rudy kool-aid and thus are completely unwilling to investigate such claims, despite their merit

P.S. Your avatar is AWESOME!!!!

1) I don't know why I was so bugged by that when I revisited it this Spring. Maybe I thought I was too cool for Rudy and tried to pick apart every detail. It also might be that the factory setting reminded me of Days of Heaven (one of my favorite films) so from that point on Rudy was going down. Sean Bean's so annoying too.

2) Hopefully I'm the first to use the avatar on this site. I was looking for one of Naomi Watt's, but this image is so glorious & sums what the film is about perfectly.

3) The Mechanic (2011)
I don't want to speak of the plot because it's sooo predictable and contrived. The next film that uses the I'm-hiding-something-from-you-and-I-feel-guilty plot device is getting an automatic 'F' (that is unless your name is Quentin Tarantino, then you're excused).

I wanted to just jot some thoughts on Simon West. I think he's a capable craftsman sorely lacking an inventive bone in his body. His use of framing and sense of geography is (for the most part) spot on. Process syntagmas are clearly defined, sometimes too much so. I noted the relationship between this film and late Tony Scott films. The use of filters and focus effects are very derivative of him. Most obvious are the expressionistic touches (i.e. Ben Foster coming out of a bar, multiple camera angles and use of highly saturated colors prvide an insite to his psyche)

Which leads me to this: if Simon West wants to make a great film one day, he's gotta unleash his demons on screen. The efficient execution further frustrates me because it's so workmanlike and predictable, he's not taking any chances. He has the skill but not a single original bone in his body.

5.5/10 (same score I gave his latest: Expendables 2)

[P@t_Mtl]

The Children of Huang Shi (2008)

Directed by : Roger Spottiswoode
Starring : Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Radha Mitchell, Chow Yun-fat
Format : DVD

Story : George Hogg (Rhys-Meyers) a young British journalist pass himself as a Red Cross driver in order to get inside the Chinese city of Nanjing in 1938. Once there he his a witness of the Japanese destruction of the city and of the civilians. Captured he is about to be killed in order to make sure he does not talk but is saved by some Chinese communist resistants and their leader Chen Hansheng (Yun-fat). Chen send's him orphanage where 56 young boys are left without help. Slowly and with the help of a aged grand mother and nurse Pearson (Mitchell), Hogg improve's the life of the children and come's to care for them. With time the war reach them and the Nationalist army want's to take the boys into their army. Hogg instead lead's them over 700 miles away to another province and safety.

Comments : George Hogg was a real person and is considered today a Hero of China. The movie itself was destroyed by many critics for taking too many liberties with the story and leaving too many elements out. It's really not a bad movie now does it deserve the less then 305 rating some websites give's it. I never expect movies to be the real history of things, they are movies, nothing more. You want to see the real story of George Hogg and the others, read a book. Beside which without this movie who in the world would now care today about George Hogg and the children helped stay alive?

Ratings : 3.5/5

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

1) I don't know why I was so bugged by that when I revisited it this Spring. Maybe I thought I was too cool for Rudy and tried to pick apart every detail. It also might be that the factory setting reminded me of Days of Heaven (one of my favorite films) so from that point on Rudy was going down. Sean Bean's so annoying too.

2) Hopefully I'm the first to use the avatar on this site. I was looking for one of Naomi Watt's, but this image is so glorious & sums what the film is about perfectly.

a couple of questions, and please PM me if it gets out of hand, so we don't hijack the thread:

(1) I love Malick, but for some reason Days of Heaven didn't resonate with me on my first viewing. I didn't find any of the characters very likable, and frankly the first 15-20 mins seemed a bit chaotic: one minute they're in a city, the next minute they're out in the country, with not much plot filler to explain why. I really want to enjoy it, since his other films are in my all-time favorites list, so went ahead and bought the blu on the Criterion sale. Any suggestions for what to look for in a second viewing? or a different perspective to take?

(2) why is that shot in Mulholland sum it up perfectly!?!! Pray, do tell! I'm obsessed with the film! I know its the shot where she

[Show spoiler]chooses "rita" as her name

, but I can't connect that to what the film overall theme?

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

Rudy

Charles Dutton.

Guess what his real life former spouse's name was.

[Show spoiler]Debbi Morgan

[KingRad]

Spoilers possible

Street Thief - This film is made to look like a documentary that follows a professional burglar named Kaspar Karr. The film captures everything from his information gathering stakeouts, his rigorous planning, to Kasper's actual heists.
I think the best part of the film is the way it's shot. It's wonderfully filmed in such a way that it makes it feel like a believable and true documentary. Malik Bader was fantastic as the "Street Thief" Kaspar Karr, and he was definitely the icing on the cake when it comes to making this movie feel real.
As good as the movie was at being believable, I found it to drag in quite a few spots. I understand that it was all part of the experience, but it just didn't hold my attention like I thought it should have. Also, I felt the film was most interesting at the end when they were trying to find out what happened to Kaspar Karr, did he vanish on purpose, is he really dead, was it a result of the night club heist? A lot of unanswered questions that I felt were more interesting than the actual film.

5.5/10

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

a couple of questions, and please PM me if it gets out of hand, so we don't hijack the thread:

(1) I love Malick, but for some reason Days of Heaven didn't resonate with me on my first viewing. I didn't find any of the characters very likable, and frankly the first 15-20 mins seemed a bit chaotic: one minute they're in a city, the next minute they're out in the country, with not much plot filler to explain why. I really want to enjoy it, since his other films are in my all-time favorites list, so went ahead and bought the blu on the Criterion sale. Any suggestions for what to look for in a second viewing? or a different perspective to take?

(2) why is that shot in Mulholland sum it up perfectly!?!! Pray, do tell! I'm obsessed with the film! I know its the shot where she

[Show spoiler]chooses "rita" as her name

, but I can't connect that to what the film overall theme?

I can see why there's not many characters to latch on to with the exception of Linda (the small girl), but that's not what I think of first. To be honest, the lighting and the shots during the magical hour (just before sunset) is what stunned me. It has a gorgeous nostalgic feel, and instantly takes me to a world that will never be. A period just before mass consumerism, hyper-capitalism and environmental decay. I view it as a celebration of nature and our time in relation to it, that is what Malick's camera and his sometimes fuzzy narratives do. It's not about the plot or characters, because he's constantly focusing elsewhere. We can either go along with Malicks earnest explorations or deny them for the comfort of plots and cheap thrills that only dull with time.

Got to run to class soon (I'll post some more) but I'll say this about mullholland drive: the narrative operates not unlike a mirror. Mirrors reveal truths and that is exactly what I think happens in the third act. An image of someone standing alongside their reversed projection: There's the persona that only exists in dreams (another dimension) and the real you. The film plays with mirrored imagery, plot points and character details: all these are twisted during the great reveal (not unlike a mirror, especially a funhouse mirror).

Notice directions. The two Ritas are facing opposite directions when in fact the two 'Ritas' in the film are quite different and just about opposite.

I may just be rambling because ive internalized this film way too much, but what can I say it's one of the greats.

PS I pulled up the simulator page and it says Lynch is trying to get a new project started.

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

you did? I don't remember that

[Show spoiler] Squid was so passionate about us watching this, and it took me and higgy so long to watch it, that I had many sleepless nights with "Rope...rope...rope...." ringing in my head. The guilt was unbearable. Finally, I sat down and watched it. Great film

I still sometimes hear the voice of squid (imagined, of course) reminding me that his recommendation turned out to be a very good one.

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

Rudy

Film: 5/5
-went to the store to buy this after ND beat USC
-they didn't have the blu - I didn't care, I said "give me the DVD" (talk about impulsive)
-I've always loved this underdog film, along with other greats like Cinderella Man and Seabiscuit, but this one has something special in it that the others don't. Charles Dutton. Why in the FACK is this dude not in more films? I read his bio and read that he did a 1-2 year stint in prison. He would have been GREAT in Shawshank! Just look at this scene where he tells Rudy "in this lifetime you don't have to prove nothing to nobody except yourself" (candidate for greatest quote in cinema history)
Rudy and Janitor - YouTube
maybe its just me, but that scene reduced this dude to a sobbing princess. I can't think of many other scenes that had that much impact on me.

p.s. GO IRISH! (I hate the SEC)

Living in Florida and hating the SEC? Maybe not the best choice!

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

a couple of questions, and please PM me if it gets out of hand, so we don't hijack the thread:

(1) I love Malick, but for some reason Days of Heaven didn't resonate with me on my first viewing. I didn't find any of the characters very likable, and frankly the first 15-20 mins seemed a bit chaotic: one minute they're in a city, the next minute they're out in the country, with not much plot filler to explain why. I really want to enjoy it, since his other films are in my all-time favorites list, so went ahead and bought the blu on the Criterion sale. Any suggestions for what to look for in a second viewing? or a different perspective to take?

(2) why is that shot in Mulholland sum it up perfectly!?!! Pray, do tell! I'm obsessed with the film! I know its the shot where she

[Show spoiler]chooses "rita" as her name

, but I can't connect that to what the film overall theme?

I could give you and endless amount of things to look for on your next viewing! The easiest is this: compare it thematically to his other films and see how they build upon one another, with Tree of Life being the culmination of his progression (even if The Thin Red Line is a superior film, imo).

[jvince]

The Secret of NIMH (1982)
dir. Don Bluth

The Good: Good concept. Pretty dark for a kids movie.

The Bad: Would have better off without the magical elements which were unexplained and out of place. Boring. Too serious. Feels like it's over too soon.

The Bottom Line: Too bleak, too messy, and too short, The Secret of NIMH likely wouldn't be considered by most as their favorite Don Bluth animation. Watching this only makes me want to revisit some of my childhood favorites from the director (The Land Before Time, An American Tail) to see how they hold up.

[jvince]

Man on Wire (2008)
dir. James Marsh

The Good: Incredible story. Plays out like a heist movie. Philippe Petit, the eponymous wirewalker himself, is such a passionate character. The score, which is basically a best-of compilation of Michael Nyman's (The Piano) previous compositions, is fitting and superb.

The Bad: Would've been much more thrilling had they shown the events in chronological order.

The Bottom Line: If you're looking for an engrossing, high-quality documentary, look no further. Man on Wire is recommended viewing.